Just as Tony's about to take his first vacation in five years, auditors show up at the INS newsroom. Tony decides to send Carl in his place on the condition that Kolchak come back with a few stories about the ship and its single's cruise, not knowing that a werewolf will be along for the trip.

Recap

Admittedly, the story you are about to read is bizarre – incredible. Those of you who wish to avoid being unsettled – who wish to avoid thinking – will label it insane. And though you, the read, would find these facts almost impossible to substantiate, that does not change their nature. Facts, they are. I know. I saw them happen...

Emily:
Ruth McDevitt shows up in this episode for the first time as "Edith Cowles". She appeared in episode #1 as an unnamed elderly woman who has written to the paper's advise columnist "Miss Emily". Later in episode #8, she reappears with the name fans know and love her for, "Miss Emily Cowles."

Allen Baron directs his third of four episodes with "The Werewolf". The other episodes were#1 "The Ripper", #3 "They Have Been...aka U.F.O.", and #7 "The Devil's Platform".

Episode Quotes

Carl: (opening narration) Admittedly the story you are about to read is bizarre, incredible. Those of you who wish to being unsettled, who wish to avoid thinking, will label it insane. And though you the reader would find these facts almost impossible to substantiate, that does not change their nature. Facts they are. I know. I saw them happen.

Paula Griffin: I don't know what's gotten into everybody...Kolchak: Claws and fangs. And it's not going to stop, either.

Episode Goofs

Not a goof really, but the werewolf stays hidden in the shadows for most of the episode, which is a good thing considering how silly the mask looks when he finally is seen.

Cultural References

Mel: A reporter... oh, like the Fifth Column.
Mel is confusing the Fifth Column and the Fourth Estate. The term “Fifth Column” dates to the Spanish Civil War when General Emilio Mola had surrounded Madrid with four columns of soldiers, but said that he would need the help of a "fifth column" - his sympathizers within the city - to succeed. The term now generally means any sort of embedded spy ring. The term “Fourth Estate” arose in the early 19th century from a Thomas Carlyle quote: "...there were three Estates in Parliament, but in the Reporters' Gallery yonder, there sat a fourth Estate more important than they all."

Analysis

Most of the time the werewolf simply tosses people around (in one case it tosses a person overboard). Werewolf legends agree on one point: the monsters kill for food. One supposes that in 1974 it was necessary to tone down such attacks and imply that the victims tossed around died.